Wood-boring beetles (Coleoptera: Scolytidae, Platypodidae) captured in ethanol-baited traps in a natural forest in Japan

Abstract

We mainly examined the community structure and seasonal population trends of scolytid and platypodid species captured via ethanol-baited traps in a natural cool-temperate forest in Japan. The scolytid species in the tribe Xyleborini represented more than 70 % of individuals captured in ethanol-baited traps, although the platypodid species could be abundant in this study area. These results indicate that the scolytid species in tribe Xyleborini might have higher sensitivity to ethanol-baited traps than others and the ethanol-baited trapping method could target the limited number of scolytid and platypodid species. Therefore, analysis based only on the ethanol-baited trapping method may lead to misunderstanding the community structure of scolytid and platypodid species. The analysis of the seasonal changes in number of scolytid and platypodid species, using a generalized linear model (GLM) showed that the ethanol-baited traps appeared to function more effectively in spring than in other seasons. Hence, the trapping season should be considered when analyzing the data obtained from ethanol-baited trapping census, especially with scolytid and platypodid species.